Round 4: Sea Eagles v Raiders preview
Mudgee hosts clash between Manly and Canberra
The Sea Eagles and the Raiders will both be trying to build on big wins when they meet this Saturday evening.
The clash will take place at Glen Willow Oval in Mudgee, the ground that recently hosted the pre-season charity shield clash. The NRL have taken the fixture to Mudgee every year since 2018, and it has also hosted 4 regular season matches. This weekend will be just the second time that Manly have taken a home game to Mudgee after they thrashed the Gold Coast there last year.
The Canberra Raiders will be hoping to find some consistency after a far from stable start to the season. An early win against Cronulla followed by a dreadful loss to the Cowboys set them up for an important clash against the Gold Coast, only to find themselves down 22-0 early on. To their credit, a second half rally handed them the two points and tied with the club record for the greatest comeback by the Raiders in their history.
Their uncertain start to the season hasn't been helped by Covid worries, when fill-in halfback Brad Schneider tested positive prior to their second round clash. But it was Schneider who played a key role in the Raiders comeback, along with halves partner Jack Wighton and hooker Tom Starling. Coach Ricky Stuart will be hoping that Covid plays no further part in the Raiders season after an outbreak hampered their pre-season training in December.
Despite speculation that co-captain and centre Jarrod Croker would return this weekend for the Raiders, he was not named in the team lists released on Tuesday afternoon, and will play reserve grade for the second week in a row. Nick Cotric will return on the wing following a sideline stint with a quad injury.
The Manly Sea Eagles will want to build off of their first win of the season last time out against Canterbury. In wet Brookvale conditions, Daly Cherry-Evans slotted the field goal to get Manly on the board in the 2022 season. It was coach Des Hasler's 250th win as head coach in the NRL.
However neither that game or their season start was terribly convincing, with disappointing losses to the Storm and Roosters to start their campaign. Star fullback Tom Trbojevic was kept quiet in the opening rounds, however he crossed for his first try of the season on Sunday. That is hopefully an omen that Manly can find the blistering form that they had at the back end of 2021.
Turbo's level of involvement in the game could be what decides it. A crucial part of Canberra's game plan will be to shut him down, and if they can't do that successfully, Manly may find themselves pouring the points on. Similarly, Manly can't let Tom Starling dominate the ruck, and can't give the likes of Jack Wighton time with the ball.
Josh Aloiai will return from suspension for Manly, but has not been named in the 17.
It will be Canberra's second trip out to Mudgee after suffering a 7 point loss to the Dragons there in 2018.
Last meeting: Round 23 2021 - Raiders 18 Sea Eagles 19
Who to watch: Tom Starling is beginning to make a name for himself. The Canberra number 9 has earned his spot at the Raiders, working well with Josh Hodgson and Siliva Havili over the past 2 years. Now that Havili is at Souths, and the injured Hodgson is reportedly heading to Parra from 2023 (to replace Reed Mahoney), Starling will be eyeing off a long term contract at the nation's capital. Last week a late switch around saw him coming off the bench and Matt Frawley given the starting hooker role. Starling will be hoping to prove his worth in order to cement his spot as the starting number 9, not just for this campaign, but many future ones also.
21 year old Manly winger Jason Saab is yet to score a try this season after scoring an incredible 26 of them last year. After his first full season of NRL last year (27 games!), he was rewarded by being the joint recipient of the club's Ken Arthurson Rising Star Award, along with young back rower Josh Schuster (out with an ankle injury). If Tom Trbojevic finds some form, expect Jason Saab to score at least a few.
The favourite: Despite having less wins on the board, Manly are the favourites to beat Canberra this Saturday.
My tip: Manly haven't quite found their potential yet, but this week I can see them hitting their straps. Manly by 8.
